Overhead cargo handling mechanism for swing-tail airplanes



Aug. 28, 1962 R. H. WEILAND ET AL 3,051,419

OVERHEAD CARGO HANDLING MECHANISM FOR SWING-TAIL AIRPLANES Filed Aug.10, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 BY I W MY-gW Arromva J Aug. 28,1962 R. H.WEILAND E'l'AL OVERHEAD CARGO HANDLING MECHANISM FOR SWING-TAILAIRPLANES 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 10, 1959 m o m M Flax/APB Wf/ZANDDONALD 14/ (FL mu A Tram/6V6 U ie This invention concerns generally acargo airplane, and relates specifically to cargo handling equipmentcarried by a cargo airplane of a particular type, namely, one wherein atail section or other end closure section which in flight positionconstitutes a continuation of the fuselage, can be swung aside or upabout a hinge axis into a load ing position to afford clear, straight-inaccess to the cargo space within the fuselage, accessible through thelatters open end. If the closure section is the tail section, in flightposition it closes the open rear end. Since the tail section willnormally carry the usual empennage, the control cables or like controlelements will extend across the hinge line, and through the tailsection, and in one design may obstruct some of the interior thereof sothat it is unavailable as cargo space. Airplanes of the types mentionedconstitute the subjects of companion applications of Raymond E. Pearsonand of Richard H. Weiland, Serial Nos. 832,699 (now Patent No.2,977,077) and 832,700, respectively, filed August 10,1959, andreference is made thereto for details of the airplane itself.

Cargo can be handled between the ground and the materially elevatedcargo deck of such an airplane in various ways and by various equipment.The companion .appliaction of Richard H. Weiland and Ray W. Hamilton,Serial No. 832,701, filed August 10, 1959 now Patent No. 3,002,719,illustrates equipment utilizing tracks, ramps, and the like extendingbetween ground level and deck level, for guidance of cargo units. Thepresent invention is directed to specifically different cargo handlingequipment utilizing overhead track means carried by the fuselage, andincluding outboard track extensions which can be folded and stowed insmall space during flight, but capable of extension beyond the closedposition of the closure section into cargo handling position. In thelatter position it is at least supported by reaction from the fuselage,whether directly or through the closure section which is itself thussupported. If, as preferred, the track extension is mounted upon theclosure section, the mounting can be so arranged that movement of theclosure section into its open or loading position automaticallypositions the track extension in alignment with the fuselage mountedtrack means, but extending so far beyond the closed position of theclosure section that interference would prevent closure of the latter,except for the folding of the track extension.

The track means and its extension may take various forms, includingfurther extensions also supported by reaction from the fuselage, wherebycargo units of considerable length can be handled. A carriage is orcarriages are guided for movement along the track means proper, withinthe fuselage, and extensions thereof, and hoists supported thereonenable lifting or lowering of cargo between the ground level and thecargo deck level. The use of overhead track means keeps the cargo deckclear of elevators or the like, as disclosed in the companionapplication of Weiland and Hamilton, and affords the ability tohandleall types of cargo with airborne equipment carrying the least weightpenalty.

The invention is shown in representative forms in the accompanyingdrawings, and the principles of the invention will be made clear in theclaims hereof.

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation, broken away, with the track means stowedand the tail section in its flight posi- 3,951,419 Patented Aug, 28,1962 tion, but with an auxiliary jack bracing the fuselage from theground.

FIGURE 2 is a similar view, showing in full lines the cargo handlingequipment loading cargo, and in dotdash lines parts in an intermediateposition.

FIGURE 3 is a similar view, with further extended track extensions, andwith parts in position to handle a long missile or the like.

FIGURE 4 is an isometric view, showing the adaptation of thecargo-handling equipment to a differently hinged tail section.

Only the rear portion of the fuselage 9 is shown in the drawings but itwill be understood that the fuselage is airborne by wings 90 (FIGURE 4):and groundborne by landing gear indicated at 99. Because of the droopof the wing tips and the depending engines generally hung beneath thewing in pods, the fuselage is necessarily at an appreciable height abovethe ground line G.

At its rear end the fuselage terminates in an opening 91 admitting tothe cargo space 92, in which cargo is supported upon a deck 93. Thisdeck, in a specific design, is some ten feet above ground level G. Atail section generally indicated by the numeral 8 is formed as a smoothrearward continuation of the fuselage 9, with parts in flight position,and is hingedly mounted upon the fuselage. The hinge line indicated atmay be disposed horizontally and transversely above the top of thefuselage, as in FIGURES 1 to 3, inclusive, or the hinge line asindicated at 80' in FIGURE 4 may be vertically disposed at one side ofthe fuselage. Swinging of the tail section upon the hinge axis 80 or 80affords free access through the rear opening 91 for straight-in loadingof cargo into or from the cargo space 92. The tail section 8, asdisclosed in the Pearson application or in the Weiland sole applicationmentioned above, may carry the empennage (not shown except fragmentallyin the present drawings) by which the airplane is controlled in flight,and control cables or the like may extend from within the fuselageacross the hinge line to the movable control surfaces, but these havebeen omitted for clearness of understanding and because they do not formany part of the present invention. Likewise, locking means are providedfor securing the tail section in its flight position, but these are notillustrated herein. Reference is made to the Welland and Pearsonapplications for such details.

Movement of the tail section 8 between its loading position and itsflight position is preferably accomplished by means such as the leadscrew 81 rotatable within a nut 82 carried by the tail section 8, or thenut may be rotatable with respect to the non-rotative lead screw. Theother end of the lead screw is supported as at 94 from the fuselage.This screw and nut securely hold the tail section in any open position.The details of the mechanism for accomplishing this movement may varywidely and are not herein specifically shown. Primarily, the means formoving the tail section will, in any open position of the latter,constitute a secure brace whereby the tail section may support anappreciable load and act as means to transmit such a load from cargohandling equipment supported in part by the tail section, back to thefuselage. A jack I may be employed adjacent the rear end of the fuselageto transmit such loads to the ground. It is immaterial whether the leadscrew or screws 81 incline from the fuselage upwardly and rearwardly toa vertically tiltable tail section or whether such means. as in FIGURE4, extend laterally to maintain the tail section swung to one side.

The cargo handling equipment according to the present invention includesoverhead single or dual track means 1 (preferably the latter) installedwithin the upper portion of the fuselage and extending to or rearwardlybeyond the opening 91 and, in addition thereto, a track extension 11which in effect is a rearward extension of the track means proper, at 1,and which terminates well to the rear of the open end at 91; in aspecific design it extends in excess of twelve feet. The extension 11 ispreferably hingedly connected at to the track means 1 but is connected,for guidance in its movement between cargo handling and stowedpositions, to the tail section 8. For instance, as shown in the forms ofFIGURES 1 to 3, inclusive, links 12 and 13 interconnect the extension 11and the tail section 8 in such manner that as the tail section swings toits open or loading position, the track extension 11 is swung upwardlyfrom a stowed position as shown in FIGURE 1 to a cargo handling positionas shown in FIGURE 2. Since the extension 11 is pivotally connected at afixed pivot 10 carried by the fuselage, a pin and slot connection isprovided at 14 between the link 12 annd the track extension 11. In theopen or loading position of the tail section the track extension 11constitutes a rearward extension in alignment with the fixedly mountedtrack means 1 whereas, when the tail section 11 swings to its closedposition, the track extension 11 will swing downwardly and somewhatforwardly as is shown by comparison of the full line position in FIGURE2 and the dot-dash line position thereof, and further in comparison withthe full line position of FIGURE 1. In the closed position of the tailsection, the extension 11 is automatically stowed within the tailsection where it is out of the usable cargo space, and yet by swingingopen of the tail section the track extension is automatically placed inproper position for use. In its position of use, it is stronglysupported by the bracing lead screw or screws 81 and by the jack I, ifthe latter employed; but, in any event, it reacts from the fuselage tomaintain and support its load L.

A carriage 2 is mounted on the track means 1, and in the loadingposition upon the extension 11, for movement longitudinally of thefuselage into and from the open rear end at 91. Hoist means 21 upon thecarriage 2 enables the lifting or lowering of cargo units between theground level and the level of the deck 9-3.

It may happen that the cargo unit to be handled is of quite appreciablelength and hence not readily manageable by a single hoist cable 22, withrelation to which it would have to be balanced. Such a situation isshown in FIGURE 3. In order to handle such a load L a further trackextension 15 is employed, this being preferably hingedly connected at 16to the rear end of the track extension 11. In loading position thefurther extension 15 is supported from the tail section 8 and hencereacts also from the fuselage, by means such as the brace or guy cable17'. Now it is possible to employ a second carriage 2a, also with ahoist 21, and to utilize a second hoisting cable 22a spaced in thelongitudinal direction from the hoist cable 22. In this manner it ispossible to handle such an elongated or awkward load L as suggested inFIGURE 3.

The extension 15 need not be permanently connected at 16, and usuallywould only be so connected when required for use. When so connected,swinging of the tail section 8 in this form of the invention from itsopen to its flight position will cause the further extension 15 to hingeor dog-leg downwardly with relation to the extension 11 which, in turn,swings about its pivot at 10, the movement of the further extension 15being controlled by its guy cable 17. The two sections ultimately foldnearly alongside one another, whereupon the cable 17 and hinge pin 16may be disconnected, and the extension 15 made fast for flight.

If the tail section 8 is hingedly mounted to swing aside as in the formof FIGURE 4, the track extension 11 can still be adequately supported inits extended position by an inverted U-frame or brace 3 which can bereleasably secured to the outer or rear end of the extension 11 asindicated at 31, and which is permanently or releasably supported fromthe fuselage or the deck 93 of the cargo space as indicated at 39. Sucha support firmly braces the extended track from the fuselage and doesnot interfere with free access of cargo to and from the cargo space. Thetail section 8 is shown in this form as having a sui'ficient clear space83 to receive the U-frame 3 when the latter is laid substantiallyhorizontally. It will be understood that the extension 11 cannot be leftthus extended even when the tail section swings to one side, for thereason that the track means being located adjacent the upper level ofthe cargo space, the rear end of the extension 11 would be well outsidethe locus of space 8 3, and would interfere with the closing of the tailsection unless the extension 11 were first folded down and so retractedinto its stowed position.

Such cargo handling equipment is readily installed within the airplane,does not occupy any appreciable or usable portion of the caro space, andis always ready for use when needed. It is of minimum weight and isreadily controlled and operated by power means available aboard suchairplanes.

We claim as our invention:

1. A cargo airplane including a fuselage open at an end for access to acargo space within it, a closure section hingedly mounted thereon forswinging between a flight position, wherein it closes the open end ofthe fuselage, and a loading position, clear of such open end andaffording access to the cargo space, means in addition to the hingemounting inter-connecting the fuselage and the closure section forsupporting the latter in its loading position, overhead track meansproper within the cargo space and supported by the fuselage, anextension of said track means separate from the latter and shiftablefrom a stowed position into a loading position externally of thefuselage and aligned with the track means proper, means intermediate theclosure section and said extension, when both are in the loading psition, supporting the extension from the closure section, and hoistmeans guided for movement along said track means and its extensionthrough the openend of the fuselage, for handling cargo between thelevels of the ground and the cargo space.

2. A cargo airplane including a fuselage open at one end for access to acargo space within it, a closure section hingedly mounted thereon forswinging between a flight position, wherein it close the open end of thefuselage, and a loading position, clear of such open end and affordingaccess to the cargo space, overhead track means proper within the cargospace and supported by the fuselage, an extension of said track meansseparate from the latter and hingedly mounted upon the track meansproper for shifting from a stowed position into operative loadingposition aligned with the track means proper, and of such length thatwhen in its loading position it extends beyond the loading position ofthe closure section, means interconnecting said extension and theclosure section and controlling the extension for folding into a stowedposition within the latter when the closure section moves into itsflight position, and conversely for unfolding into its loading positionwhen the closure section moves into its loading position, and hoistmeans guided for movement along said track means and its extension,through the open end of the fuselage, for handling cargo between thelevels of the ground and the cargo space.

3. A cargo airplane as in claim 2, including brace means reactingbetween the fuselage and the extension of the track means for supportingthe outboard end of the track extension in its cargo handling position.

4. A cargo airplane as in claim 2, wherein the interconnection betweenthe extension of the track means and the closure section is arranged tosupport said extension from the closure section when both are in theloading position.

5. A cargo airplane including a fuselage open at an ,end, a closuresection hingedly mounted thereon for swinging upwardly from a flightposition, wherein it forms a streamlined continuation of the fuselage,to a loading position, wherein it affords free access to the open end ofthe cargo space within the fuselage, means in addition to the hingemounting supporting the closure section from the fuselage in its upswungloading position, overhead track means proper carried by the fuselagewithin the cargo space, an outboard extension of said track means of alength when aligned with the track means proper to extend beyond theloading position of the closure section, means supporting said extensionfrom the closure section, to swing with the latter from and intoalignment with the fuselage-mounted track means, as the closure sectionswings towards and from its flight position, and cargo handlingequipment, including hoist means, movable along said track means andsaid extension thereof.

6. A cargo airplane including a fuselage open at an end, a closuresection hingedly mounted thereon for swinging upwardly from a flightposition, wherein it forms a streamlined continuation of the fuselage,to a loading position, wherein it affords free access to the open end ofthe cargo space within the fuselage, means in addition to the hingemounting supporting the closure section from the fuselage in its upswungloading position, overhead track means proper carried by the fuselagewithin the cargo space, an outboard extension of said track meansmovable into and from alignment with the track means proper, two links,a first nearer the hinge of the closure section and a second moredistant from such hinge, interconnecting the closure section and thetrack extension, and guiding the latter between its aligned position, asthe closure section swings into its loading position, and a stowedposition as the closure section swings into its flight position, andcargo handling equipment, including hoist means,

6 movable along said track means proper and said extension thereof.

7. A cargo airplane including a fuselage open at an end, a closuresection hingedly mounted thereon for swinging upwardly from a flightposition, wherein it forms a streamlined continuation of the fuselage,to a loading position, wherein it affords free access to the open end ofthe cargo space within the fuselage, means in addition to the hingemounting supporting the closure section from the fuselage in its upswungloading position, overhead track means proper carried by the fuselagewithin the cargo space, with its external end adjacent the open end ofthe fuselage, an outboard extension of said track means hingedlyconnected to the external end of the track means proper, meanssupporting said extension from the closure section, and guiding the sameto swing into alignment with the track means proper when the closuresection swings to its loading position, the extension being of a lengthwhen so aligned to extend outwardly beyond the loading position of theclosure section, said supporting means further guiding the extension formovement into stowed position within the closure section when the latterswings into its flight position.

8. A cargo airplane as in claim 7, wherein the supporting means for theextension comprises two links, the first of whch is nearer the outer endof the extension and the second nearer its inner end, said first linkbeing fixedly pivoted to each of the extension and the closure section,and the second link includes a pin and slot interconnection between theextension and the closure section.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,268,009 Babb et a1 Dec. 30, 1941 2,323,279 Van Zelm June 29, 19432,404,195 Schlieben July 16, 1946 2,778,512 Strona Jan. 22, 1957

